Okay, folks, we're gonna call this meeting of the City of Allentown Planning Commission order.

Uh first item on the agenda is the approval of the minutes of the March 10th meeting.

Does anybody have any comments, corrections, or additions to the minutes that have been prepared?

Hearing none, those will stand approved as written.

And we'll roll right into item number two, which is an adaptive reuse project.

Turn it over to Ms.

Gomez for the introduction.

The first project is adaptive reuse at 322 to 324 North 7th Street.

Adaptive reuse is defined as the conversion of 65% or more of gross floor area of a principal building that was formerly occupied by non-residential uses.

The procedure here is for the planning commission to provide a comments and recommendations, which will be forwarded to the zoning hearing board for a final decision.

The subject property consists of two buildings.

This particular application only looks at the building on Hall Street, which is a one two-story manufacturing warehouse.

The applicant proposes to convert the manufacturing warehouse on North Hall Street into six dwelling units through the adaptive reuse process.

The other building has 12.

The renovation would create two one bedroom, two one bedroom with an office, and two two-bedroom apartment units.

Parking is located on the abutting lot at 315 319 North Hall Street under common ownership, which will be restriped for a total of 19 spaces.

The property is located within the MXC storefront mixed corridor, and the partially within the HBDO Historic Building Demolition Overlay District.

The zoning classifications allows the adaptive reuse as previously mentioned through special exception.

There are no other insufficiencies identified by zoning.

The immediate neighborhood along 7th Street consists of commercial, mixed use, smaller apartment buildings, and single family homes.

Applicant has provided elevations to show the proposed changes to the exterior of the existing building.

Shall be submitted to minimally show the street tree to be planted on an empty tree well along North 7th Street.

Replacement of any deteriorated curb and non-ADA compliance sidewalk, compliance with parkland dedication requirements, other land or fees, and compliance with sewage and planning and any utility connections.

The property is within the HBDO, but it the rear building is actually outside of the HBDO, so that way the HBO does not comply as a kind of interesting mapping.

This is also inside the historic district, so or not inside the historic district across the street from the historic district, so it's kind of nudged between a few various historic districts, but this particular building is not within either of those.

The project is within Center Allentown.

Center Allentown is the heart of the city where neighborhoods and entrepreneurs and small businesses and the community thrive alongside one another.

The adaptive reuse would support the comprehensive plans goal to create opportunities for smaller investment that would contribute to the housing supply.

Allentown works going through an analysis of all of the various applicable plans.

Allentown Works is a federally funded workforce development strategy that aims to transform communities by aggressively lowering prime age employment.

Housing is specifically not part of Allentown Works, but the jobs housing balance is important to the overall concept.

The proposal contributes by moving the neighborhood closer to having the jobs housing balance.

Welcome home is the city's housing plan.

With the housing plan, the city aims to preserve housing affordability, increase affordable housing stock, and assist low and moderate income threshold households find stability.

According to the housing study, the city's vacancy rate is between 0.8 and 1.4, and a healthy vacancy rate is between 5 and 8%.

So this addition of apartments will help the Allentown move closer to a healthy vacancy rate.

Staff suggests the commission inquire as the affordability of the proposed apartment buildings within this particular neighborhood.

This project is along 7th Street, and there are some projects along 7th Street plan for the future.

Citywide bike plan provide is uh developed to ensure infrastructure investments that promote safety and equity multimodal transportation for all members of the community.

The planned bike routes are shown within the backup and staff recommends bike racks be outdone and law indoor long-term storage.

Finally, the city's park plan is a comprehensive strategy to conserve and improve the city's recreation open space and park.

The project is in close proximity to uh old fairgrounds, Fifth Street Spray Park.

Um when this project is reviewed through a separate application, it will have to address the the park dedication requirements.

So in conclusion, staff recommends um approval with the following conditions.

One, a minor land development um be submitted to minimally show a street tree to be planted in the empty tree well, replacement of any deteriorated curb and EDA compliance sidewalk, compliance with parkland dedication, compliance with sewage planning, utility connections, um and those can all be made with the minimal um submittal requirements of a minor subdivision.

Um sewage planning, um bike racks, and um finally um we recommend you inquire about the units affordability.

Concludes my comments.

Okay.

Thank you, Jennifer.

Is there a representative for the project?

Yes.

Uh I'm Ron Rabitz.

On the uh uh uh applicant's attorney, as a point of clarification, I did submit the application.

I signed it, but on behalf of my client, Richard Bowers here.

Um understand all the comments.

I guess the first thing I'll I'll address the last issue, the affordability.

Mr.

Bauer can talk a little bit.

You you come up here.

Just talk about you have some units now and what you're anticipating in terms of rental.